Carol Welsman – Alone Together

This well thought out, intricate jazz album from Carol Welsman, the Canadian born singer-songwriter, is another jewel in her (rather full) crown. Her 11th studio album brings the listener traditional, straight down-the-line jazz and it’s very easy to listen to.

Welsman opens the first track with a little trademark scat and then leans into the lyrics with her effortless charm and slender tones on Sammy Khan’s ‘Day by Day’. Welsman is well-versed in delivering timeless classics in her own unique style having won several Canadian Juno Award nominations for previous albums and don’t be surprised to see another one roll out here. In the title track ‘Alone Together’ a reworking of Arthur Schwartz/Howard Dietz’s classic, she opens with another fine example of the Welsman classy vocal control, using her voice as an instrument, guiding the listener through the first thirty seconds of ups and downs, jazzy riffs and technical skill.

This album really is an accolade to hold for Welsman, a wonderful portrayal of her as an artist, controlled but exuberant where needs be. She delivers a calculated and estimated approach to jazz and she should be proud of it. I have always thought that covering classics is an incredibly tough gig. There’s no point keeping it too simple – there’s no point covering a song if you’re going to do it much the same as it was done before, chances are, you’ll mess it up. Wandering too far from the beaten track is also a dangerous game. There’s a reason that a track became a classic and trailing it off into the distance and making it a different song altogether, whilst taking skill, leaves only the ectoplasm behind. A classic needs to remain a classic even in the reworking and Welsman is an artist that does exactly that.